Sen. Bernie Sanders Weighs 2016 Run for President

Vermont Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" he's thinking about running for president in 2016 with a platform to help build the middle class — strategies the Republicans in Congress have consistently blocked.

"We have tried in the Senate to pass legislation to raise the minimum wage. We've tried a jobs program. We've tried pay equity. We've tried to get rid of this disastrous Citizens United decision, which allows billionaires to buy elections moving forward with a constitutional amendment. In every single instance, we were filibustered by the Republicans," Sanders said Thursday.
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Although Sanders maintained Democrats were partly to blame for the inability to get legislation passed to help build the middle class, he said the primary responsibility was "more the Republican Party."

"There are some people in the United States Congress who could care less about working people or low income people. Their job is to represent the wealthy and large corporations. Big money does not want to raise the minimum wage, and a lot of people follow that lead," he said.

Sanders said he was "giving thought to" a possible run for president, but explained he had to consider if he could be successful "taking on the billionaire class and the enormous sums of money that would be thrown against somebody once they stand up for working families."

Policies to rebuild the middle class would include a reconsideration of "unfettered free trade," Sanders said, which had been responsible for 60,000 factories moving their operations overseas, thereby losing "millions of decent paying jobs in the last 14 years."

Congress also needed to "stop the assault on trade unions," raise the minimum wage to "at least $10.10 an hour," rebuild the country's infrastructure, and support pay equity for women.

Should Republicans win the Senate, Sanders predicted the approval of numerous bills that he hoped President Barack Obama would not sign.

"There'll be a tax on Social Security, through a so-called chained CPI [Consumer Price Index]. There'll be an attempt to end Medicare, as we know it. There'll be massive cuts in Medicaid, in nutrition programs, in education. We will not see action on rebuilding our infrastructure. And, there'll be more tax breaks for the rich and large corporations," he said.

Vermont Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" he's thinking about running for president in 2016 with a platform to help build the middle class - strategies the Republicans in Congress have consistently blocked.